Instant art

There is sometimes a bit difficult to navigate between the different models and versions of Wacom tablets. So it is here good of the 2011 version of the Bamboo tablet "Pen & Touch". It can be used to choice and finger, like an oversized trackpad, or with the stylus.

The useful area is 9.1 cm on 14.6, which may at first seem small. But in reality, this is an area quite sufficient, as long as you do not use too much display area: the main difference with a laptop trackpad is here - by default - a physical point of the tablet corresponds to a physical point of your display, so the higher your screen is bigger and a little distance on the tablet corresponds to a distance on the screen. I personally use either with the screen of my laptop alone or with in addition a 24-inch external display, and even in the second case, the pen movements are precise enough to draw.

One can in the tablet preferences adjust all these settings with total flexibility to radically transform the tablet use. Note that the driver works perfectly on Mac OS X 10.7 Lion. I remember Wacom drivers simply atrocious it a few years ago, so it's a relief. The same preference pane lets you change the functions associated to the 4 buttons on the tablet, which is very convenient. For example, I use a button as a space bar, to move around in a drawing in Photoshop without having to go to the tablet to the keyboard. Obviously it would be more convenient to assign different functions to the keys depending on the application, but for the moment this is not possible.

In terms of negatives, there is the stiffness of the USB cord, which tends to curl, but it is obviously very anecdotal (you can buy an accessory to use the wireless tablet). Otherwise, the Pen & Touch does not support the tilt of the pen; for that we must move to the higher range. But even without the inclination to manage the various pressure-sensitive brushes creative programs (like Illustrator, Photoshop or Painter) allow to obtain results bluffing ... with a little practice. Of course, no tablet can substitute for training or prior practice of drawing; but for those who have the least experience and taste for drawing, Bamboo Pen & Touch will appear as a revelation.